Q&A with Carmine’s on Penn Chef David Villareal

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Chef David Villareal is head chef at Carmine’s on Penn, a family-style Italian staple of the Washington Park neighborhood in Denver, CO. Learn more about Chef David’s journey to cooking and favorite Carmine’s dishes.

 What inspired you to become a chef?

I started cooking when I was young, helping my Grandpa make the meals for our big family gatherings. I developed a passion for cooking and have now been a chef since 2018.

Tell us about one of your most memorable experiences during your time at Carmine’s.

The night I met Dodger’s first baseman, Freddie Freeman, when he came to dine at Carmine’s on Penn.

What do you think makes Carmine’s a unique dining experience?

Carmine’s family-style serving makes it unique, and also how family oriented the restaurant and dining environment is.

What is your favorite part of family-style dining?

The portions, I love that everyone gets to try everything.

Which spring/summer ingredient is your favorite to cook with, and which Carmine’s dish features this ingredient?

Turnips, fiddleheads, and radish. They can be in any of our seasonal dishes, including the Seasonal Risotto, Seasonal Gnocchi and Seasonal Ravioli. I always enjoy making our Carmine’s specials using fresh, in-season ingredients.

Tell us about some dishes that use local Colorado Ingredients

Our House Salad and Community Caesar Salad are made with lettuce grown here in Colorado.

When Palisade peaches and Olathe corn are in season, we like to make seasonal dishes that include them. These dishes are a must to order when they are on the menu.

Is there any dish that you insisted go on the menu?

Last time we updated the menu, all the chefs and sous chefs insisted on the Beef Short Ribs, Pesto Primavera, and Artichoke Alla Fontina, to name a few!

When you are not cooking, what do you enjoy doing in your free time?

I love watching movies, hiking, and relaxing with friends.

We know your favorite dishes must change often! At this moment in time, what is your favorite:

Carmine’s dish

Pasta alla Capo with sausage

Carmine’s dessert

The New York Style Cheesecake

Favorite kind of wine to pair with Italian food

Chianti

Don’t come to Carmine’s without trying____

The Chicken/Veal Piccata

What is one fun fact about you that most people don’t know?

I snowshoed up Mount Lincoln in the winter, and snowboarded down.

Q&A With Carmine’s on McGregor Square Chef Benjamin Landreth

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Chef Benjamin Landreth is head chef at Carmine’s on McGregor Square, the newest Carmine’s location in Denver, CO, that brings family-style Italian eats to the residential, office and entertainment district adjacent to Coors Field. Learn more what inspired Chef Ben to become a chef and which Carmine’s dishes he recommends as a must-have!

 What inspired you to become a chef?

A strong love for food, and the happiness you can bring to others through cooking.

Tell us about one of your most memorable experiences during your time at Carmine’s.

Getting to cook for Peyton Manning. That was truly memorable. He loved the Chicken Parmigiana!

What do you think makes Carmine’s a unique dining experience?

At Carmine’s, food is the center piece for life experiences. It’s about coming together to share food family-style, and so much more.

What is your favorite part of family-style dining?

Getting to try a little of everything.

What menu item are you most excited about as we head into the spring/summer season?

Always the seasonal dishes – the Seasonal Ravioli, Seasonal Gnocchi and Seasonal Risotto. I love getting to create new and unique food for our guests using ingredients that really bring the seasons to your taste buds.

Which spring/summer ingredient is your favorite to cook with, and which Carmine’s dish features this ingredient?

Spring peas are one of my favorite spring ingredients ever. Right now, it is in our Seasonal Ravioli, and it’s amazing.

Tell us about some dishes that use local Colorado Ingredients

We always buy local whenever possible. Most of our menu always has at least a few local ingredients, for example, the lettuce used in our House Salad and Community Caesar. The best food is always the freshest food and we love to support local companies and growers.

Is there any dish that you insisted go on the menu?

The Beef Short Ribs are a must have.

When you are not cooking, what do you enjoy doing in your free time?

Anything in the mountains. Snowboarding, hiking, camping, just getting away for a bit.

We know your favorite dishes must change often! At this moment in time, what is your favorite:

Carmine’s dish

Ragu Con Funghi

Carmine’s dessert

The New York Style Cheesecake

Favorite kind of wine to pair with Italian food

Barolo

Don’t come to Carmine’s without trying____

A seasonal dish

What is one fun fact about you that most people don’t know? 

I was born and raised in Colorado

 

Q&A with Brad Ritter: Which Wine While You Dine?

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Brad Ritter is the owner of Carmine’s Italian Restaurants in Denver, Colorado. Carmine’s two locations, Carmine’s on Penn and Carmine’s on McGregor Square, both have a wine program that feature 100% Italian wines. Learn more about Brad’s love of wine and how he carefully curated the wine list for his guests to enjoy.

Tell us about Carmine’s wine program and what makes it unique.

Carmine’s offers exclusively Italian wine.  As is the custom in Italy, Italian wine is uniquely suited to be consumed with food, and often enjoyed with family-style dining. We search out value and quality producers, and it is common for us to know or to have visited the producers we represent.

How did you select the wines that are on the menu?

Our goal is to offer a variety of styles, flavors, price points and value. We represent as many parts of Italy as possible.  We seek wines that are well made and offer value.  We keep the wine list smallish and refined as this category can easily become confusing or even overwhelming.

Another criteria is the rule of one.  One Chianti, one Chianti Classico, one Barbera.  We rarely repeat either wine type or producer.  As we taste and evaluate wines, we ask for input from the producer, “what wine is important to you or best represents your winery?”  An example is Ruffino Riserva Ducale Gold Chianti Classico Gran Selezione.  Ruffino is a producer of historic importance. It was important to me to offer this wine that has history in the bottle, along with delicious wine.

What is your favorite part about helping a guest choose / pair their wine?

I enjoy wine.  I enjoy learning about wine.  Introducing a guest to a new experience is a thrill.  Every wine we offer is special in some way.  I often say to our employees that our most inexpensive offering may be the most thrilling wine a guest has this year.  Every bottle of wine deserves respect.

How did / do you learn about different wines that you offer at Carmine’s?

I have been involved with wine professionally for several decades.  It is a fascinating product and my learning is constant.  I have visited hundreds of wineries around the world. Walking the vineyards or through the winery with those who work there daily is so enlightening.  I brought this enthusiasm and interest in wine to Carmine’s on Penn over 15 years ago, as well as to our newest location, Carmine’s on McGregor Square.  

Tell us about your experience visiting the wineries. Which have you visited? What did you learn? What excited you most?

I am fascinated by vineyards and the process of growing wine.  I have walked too many vineyards to count.  I have tasted grapes from the vine to discover the quality and variety of the grapes.  I picked grapes by hand and developed a new respect for the labor that is required.  I consider the winemaker a chef who takes great pride in finding the beauty that leads to wine.  Details matter. 

I have seen a laser driven, unmanned Maserati tractor planting vines in straight lines.  I climbed down 10 feet in a pit dug in the middle of a vineyard to see the soil.  I sat next to the winemaker tasting over 40 years’ worth of Tete du Cuvee Champagne at his winery.  I traveled (in one trip) from the southern tip of Italy to the border of Slovenia along the Adriatic coast visiting wineries.  I tasted wine out of barrels for hours working on blends of vineyards until my tongue was black and burned from the immature wines.  I have seen history intertwined with winemaking such as bullet holes from WWII in a wine cellar and another winery that successfully hid their best wines behind a false wall to save it from invaders (much of the wine was still in the hidden cellar).

I have learned at wineries how little I know about wine.  I have learned to remain humble with wine.  I love to share my joy and experience with wine.

What are the most important traits you look for when you plan the wine program?

Value!  Variety.  Quality.  Balance of familiar and obscure.

What is the most common question you receive from guests at the restaurant about wine? And what is the answer?

What do you recommend?  To answer this question is to engage the guest about their likes, dislikes, experience, and interest.  Are they having Beef Short Ribs, Lemon Shrimp Pasta or Chicken Parmigiana? It’s important to know what they are eating as well to make a recommendation. Commonly our guests consume New World wine and Italian wine brings new awareness and enjoyment.

Carmine’s Featured in Denver Life Magazine

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The new McGregor Square location got some special attention in Denver Life magazine. Click the link below to view the article.

View Article

 

Carmine’s on Penn Hours Change – Closed Tuesday

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Our hours are changing temporarily, and we will no longer be open on Tuesdays. From Wednesday to Sunday, our hours are extending by 30 minutes.

Like many other business, our staff limitations have caused us to cut back. Once we are able to keep up with staffing, we will resume to our normal hours.

For the time being, our current hours are: 5-8:30pm Wed, Thurs, Sun | 5-9:30pm Fri, Sat

Thank you for your understanding!

McGregor Square in the Press

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Carmine’s Italian Restaurant Brings Old School Charm to McGregor Square

“As the city begins to blossom back to life, there may be no better symbol of the renewed energy than McGregor Square… the whole complex was recently joined by a cornerstone with more than enough clout and quality to tie the location together. Carmine’s Italian Restaurant — a genuine staple of the Wash Park neighborhood for nearly three decades running — opened its second iteration downtown on June 15, offering the same family-style dining that made the original so wildly popular.“

–303 Magazine
https://303magazine.com/2021/06/carmines-italian-restaurant-mcgregor-square/

 

First Look: Carmine’s on McGregor Square Delivers Comfort in the Chaos

“What we saw: The decor is lighter than at the original Carmine’s on Penn, which has been serving Italian food and wine on South Pennsylvania Avenue since 1994. That was intentional, according to owner Brad Ritter, who purchased Carmine’s on Penn in 2006 and chose McGregor Square for its first expansion.

‘For years, so many people would say, You need to open a Carmine’s in my neighborhood,’ he explains. While he considered other possibilities, it wasn’t until he was approached about this Colorado Rockies development that he decided to add a second Carmine’s. ‘How could you say no to this opportunity?’ he asks.”

–Westword
https://www.westword.com/restaurants/mcgregor-square-new-denver-italian-restaurant-carmines-11999597

NOW OPEN! Carmine’s on McGregor Square

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Our McGregor Square restaurant is now open for dinner! We are so excited to open this beautiful new restaurant in this great location. Whether you are coming downtown for a game, live downtown or are coming down for a sampling of all the culture Denver offers, come and dine with us!

Make your reservation now

New Location Opening Soon!

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Our second location will be opening soon in Downtown Denver! We’re beyond excited to share this gorgeous new space with you. Follow us on social media @carminesitalianrestaurants to stay up to date on all the latest news, see our progressing interiors, and most of all, be the first to know when we open our doors!

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We’re Opening a New Location!

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We are proud to announce an expansion opportunity to the Ballpark area of downtown Denver: “Carmine’s on McGregor Square!” We are honored to have been chosen to join this stunning property adjacent to Coors Field. Our neighbors in this project will be various retail establishments, office spaces, a hotel, condominiums, a food hall, sports bar and Denver’s local, American Italian immigrant family style restaurant, Carmine’s! We will be serving lunch and dinner seven days a week. Lunch will focus on individual portions of pastas, a selection of Little Carmine’s menu of sandwiches, salads, soup and sides. For dinner, you can expect your favorite menu items enjoyed over the years with some new additions. Carmine’s on McGregor Square joins the original Carmine’s on Penn (now celebrating 27 years in business) offering made to order, food to share in portions for two people or family size. Projected opening date on McGregor Square is slated for early May 2021.

See McGregor Square